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Young St Austell dad left 'alienated' following Parkinson's diagnosis

Published
by
the Pirate FM News Team at 3:56pm 11th April 2019.
(Updated at 4:03pm 11th April 2019)

A young dad from St Austell has revealed how his diagnosis of Parkinson's has left him feeling alienated.

Drew Hallam was just 35 when he was diagnosed last year.

He initially thought he had a trapped nerve from carrying his one year old son around.

After a scan, he was found to have the disease.

Drew told Pirate FM:

"My doctor thought it could be Parkinson’s, but my friends and family were adamant that I was too young to have the condition, and this convinced me too. After it was finally confirmed by a DAT scan it hit me so hard.

"Now when I tell people that I have Parkinson’s there’s a lot of disbelief. It can sometimes come across quite rude when people tell me I’m too young to have it, it’s as if they think I’ve made it up."

“I can feel self-conscious about my Parkinson’s, especially when I’m in the supermarket at the self-scan checkout and I’m aware my left hand is shaking when I’m using the screen. People often stare at me and it makes me feel a bit alienated.”

Today (11 April) on World Parkinson's Day, new figures reveal nearly 90% of people with Parkinson's have experienced harassment and discrimination.

62% of people have been told they 'don't look ill', while 56% say people have told them they don't believe they have the condition.

Charity Parkinson's UK is working to raise awareness of the disease by urging people to watch and share this video: